Fred Dwight Whitfield (January 7, 1938 – January 31, 2013) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

player Player may refer to: Role or adjective * Player (game), a participant in a game or sport ** Gamer, a player in video and tabletop games ** Athlete, a player in sports ** Player character, a character in a video game or role playing game who is ...

. A

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

, he appeared in the Major Leagues from 1962 to 1970, primarily for the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

and also for with the

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals hav ...

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

and

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

. Nicknamed "Wingy" for his unique throwing motion, he threw and batted left-handed, stood tall and weighed . He was born in

Vandiver, Alabama Vandiver is a census-designated place (CDP) and unincorporated community in Shelby County, Alabama, United States. Its population was 1168 as of the 2010 census. One structure in Vandiver, the Falkner School, is listed on the Alabama Register o ...

, one of four children of William Theodore and Inez Clarice (Brasher) Whitfield. He attended Woodlawn High School in

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...

. At age 19, he married Helen Leverton of

Gadsden, Alabama Gadsden is a city in and the county seat of Etowah County in the U.S. state of Alabama. It is located on the Coosa River about northeast of Birmingham and southwest of Chattanooga, Tennessee. It is the primary city of the Gadsden Metropolitan ...

on February 9, 1957 and their household eventually numbered six children. Whitfield was signed by the Cardinals as an amateur free agent in 1956. He made his big league debut at age 24 on May 27, 1962. Pinch-hitting for future

Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-r ...

Bob Gibson Robert Gibson (born Pack Robert Gibson; November 9, 1935October 2, 2020) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals (1959–1975). Nicknamed "Gibby" and "Hoot" ( ...

, he drew a walk off

Bob Shaw Robert Shaw (31 December 1931 – 11 February 1996) was a science fiction writer and fan from Northern Ireland, noted for his originality and wit. He won the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer in 1979 and 1980. His short story "Light of Other Days" ...

of the

Milwaukee Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bost ...

, but was promptly erased in a double play. Two days later he made his first start, going 1-for-4 at Pittsburgh’s

Forbes Field Forbes Field was a baseball park in the Oakland (Pittsburgh), Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1909 to June 28, 1970. It was the third home of the Pittsburgh Pirates Major League Baseball (MLB) team, and the first home of t ...

, with his first hit a fourth inning RBI single off

Al McBean Alvin O'Neal McBean (born May 15, 1938) is a former professional baseball player from the United States Virgin Islands. He played in Major League Baseball as a pitcher, most notably for the Pittsburgh Pirates with whom he played the majority of hi ...

that scored

Red Schoendienst Albert Fred "Red" Schoendienst (; February 2, 1923 – June 6, 2018) was an American professional baseball second baseman, coach, and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB), and is largely known for his coaching, managing, and playing years wit ...

. His prime seasons were 1963–66, with seasons of 21, 10, 26 and 27

home runs In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

with a single-season high of 27 (fifth in the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

) in 1966 and single-season highs in 1965 with a .293

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

and 90

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...

. He was named first baseman on the 1965

The Sporting News The ''Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a pr ...

American League all-star team. His career batting average was .253 with a total of 108 home runs and 356 runs batted in. After leaving baseball, he was employed as a shipping clerk by Anderson Electric in Vandiver. He was an avid outdoorsman and enjoyed playing bluegrass music and gospel music on his guitar and was active in a gospel group that included his wife and other family members. He died of complications from

non-Hodgkin's lymphoma Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), also known as non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, is a group of blood cancers that includes all types of lymphomas except Hodgkin lymphomas. Symptoms include lymphadenopathy, enlarged lymph nodes, fever, night sweats, weight los ...

at age 75 on January 31, 2013. His survivors included his wife of nearly 56 years, Helen; a daughter and five sons and their spouses; and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitfield, Fred 1938 births 2013 deaths American expatriate baseball players in Canada Atlanta Crackers players Baseball players from Alabama Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Charleston Marlins players Cincinnati Reds players Cleveland Indians players Deaths from cancer in Alabama Deaths from lymphoma in the United States Keokuk Cardinals players Major League Baseball first basemen Montreal Expos players People from Shelby County, Alabama St. Louis Cardinals players San Juan Marlins players Tulsa Oilers (baseball) players Winnipeg Whips players Winston-Salem Red Birds players